Aircraft communications system selectively allocating data communications channel capacity and associated methods

ABSTRACT

A communications system for an aircraft carrying personnel having personal electronic devices (PEDs) for wireless data communications outside the aircraft includes a ground-based communications network, and an access point in the aircraft for providing a WLAN for data communications with the PEDs. An air-to-ground transceiver in the aircraft cooperates with the access point for data communications with the ground-based communications network. At least one data traffic controller selectively allocates data communications channel capacity between the PEDs and the ground-based communications network.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 60/909,189 filed Mar. 30, 2007, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of communications systems,and more particularly, to a communications system for an aircraft havingpersonal electronic devices (PEDs) for communicating outside theaircraft.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Existing cellular mobile telecommunication systems serve terrestrial(i.e., ground-based) personal wireless subscriber devices. Fordiscussion purposes, these devices are also referred to as personalelectronic devices (PEDs), and include mobile (cellular and PCS)telephones, personal digital assistants, wireless email devices,wireless equipped laptop computers, and personal computers. Since thecellular mobile telecommunication systems are terrestrial-based, theyare not readily extendable to non-terrestrial applications due to signalinterference problems between ground-based and non-terrestrial personalwireless subscriber devices. Moreover, tower antennas supporting theterrestrial-based system are often pointed down to improve performance.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,113,780 assigned to Aircell, Inc. discloses anaircraft-based network for wireless subscriber devices that provideswireless telecommunication services in the aircraft for both terrestrialand non-terrestrial regions. In particular, an air-to-ground network anda ground-based cellular communications network are spoofed into thinkingthat the wireless subscriber devices have no special considerationsassociated with their operation, even though the wireless subscriberdevices are located on an aircraft in flight. This requires anon-terrestrial feature transparency system on-board the aircraft toreplicate the full functionality of a given wireless subscriber device,which has a certain predetermined feature set from a ground-basedwireless service provider, at another wireless subscriber device locatedwithin the aircraft. This mirroring of wireless subscriber deviceattributes enables a localized cell for in-cabin communications yetretains the same wireless subscriber device attributes for theair-to-ground link.

Another aircraft-based network for wireless subscriber devices thatprovided wireless telecommunication services in an aircraft for bothterrestrial and non-terrestrial regions was introduced by Boeing, andwas referred to as Connexion by Boeing^(SM). Connexion by Boeing^(SM) isno longer in service due to its failure to attract sufficient customers,but at the time, provided an in-flight online connectivity service. Thisservice allowed travelers to access a satellite-based high-speedInternet connection for an hourly or flat rate fee while in flightthrough a wired Ethernet or a wireless 802.11 Wi-Fi connection. Theinfrastructure used a phased array antenna or a mechanically steeredKu-band antenna on the aircraft, a satellite link to and from theaircraft, leased satellite transponders, and ground stations.

Even in view of the advances made to aircraft communications systemsallowing passengers to operate wireless portable handheld devices whileairborne, there is still a need to improve upon this service.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing background, it is therefore an object of thepresent invention to provide an aircraft communications system in whichpersonal electronic devices (PEDs) can be operated while in flight forcommunicating outside the aircraft, such as via email, text messaging,credit card transactions, multimedia messaging and web surfing.

This and other objects, advantages and features in accordance with thepresent invention are provided by a communications system for anaircraft carrying at least some personnel having PEDs for wireless datacommunications outside the aircraft. The communications system maycomprise a ground-based communications network, and an access point inthe aircraft for providing a wireless local area network (WLAN) for datacommunications with the PEDs. An air-to-ground transceiver in theaircraft may cooperate with the access point for data communicationswith the ground-based communications network. At least one data trafficcontroller may selectively allocate data communications channel capacitybetween the PEDs and the ground-based communications network.

The data communications may comprise email data and text message data.Personnel may include passengers as well as other individuals supportingoperation of the aircraft. PEDs may include personal mobile telephones(cellular and PCS), personal digital assistants, wireless email devices,and wireless equipped laptop computers having Wi-Fi/WiMax capability orair cards, for example.

The data traffic controller may comprise a ground-based data trafficcontroller associated with the ground-based communications network.Alternatively, the data traffic controller may comprise anaircraft-based data traffic controller associated with the access pointand the air-to-ground transceiver.

The data traffic controller may allocate the data communications channelcapacity based on a metric, with priority of service being one example.The data communications may comprise flight operational data andnon-flight operational data. The data traffic controller may allocate ahigher priority of service to the flight operation data. Personnel withPEDs supporting operation of the aircraft would be considered flightoperational data, for example.

The data traffic controller may also allocate data communicationschannel capacity usage among the PEDs. The data traffic controller maylimit data communications exceeding a predetermined portion of the datacommunications channel capacity for a given PED. For example, an emailwith a very large attachment would be limited (from the aircraft) by anaircraft-based data traffic controller in the aircraft, whereas anInternet request resulting in a large number of web pages being sent toa PED (from a ground-based base station) would be limited by aground-based data traffic controller. This advantageously allows agreater or maximum number of passengers on the aircraft to communicateover the air-to-ground interface using their own PEDs.

Another aspect is directed to a method for operating a communicationssystem for an aircraft carrying at least some personnel having personalelectronic devices (PEDs) for wireless data communications outside theaircraft with a ground-based communications network. The communicationssystem may comprise an access point or pico/femto-cell in the aircraftfor providing a wireless local area network (WLAN) for datacommunications with the PEDs, and an air-to-ground transceiver in theaircraft cooperating with the access point for data communications withthe ground-based communications network. The method may compriseselectively allocating data communications channel capacity between thePEDs and the ground-based communications network using at least one datatraffic controller.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an air-to-ground communications networkin accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of the air-to-groundcommunications network with passenger carried equipment on the aircraftin accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of the PED shown inFIG. 2 with the translator device integrated therein.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the air-to-ground communicationsnetwork in which predetermined web pages are transmitted over an airportdata link for storage on the aircraft in accordance with the presentinvention.

FIG. 5 is a screen shot from a PED of an interactive map correspondingto the flight path of the aircraft in accordance with the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 is a screen shot from a PED of an interactive map correspondingto the destination of the aircraft in which different informationcategories are displayed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the air-to-ground communicationsnetwork in which network selection controllers are used for selectingbetween satellite or air-to-ground communications in accordance with thepresent invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the air-to-ground communicationsnetwork in which hard handoff controllers are used for handing off theaircraft between base stations in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of the different content delivery channelsavailable for distribution to the aircraft passengers in accordance withthe present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of the aircraft illustrating thedifferent ranges in which data communications is received in accordancewith the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodimentsof the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied inmany different forms and should not be construed as limited to theembodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided sothat this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fullyconvey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Likenumbers refer to like elements throughout, and prime notation is used toindicate similar elements in alternative embodiments.

Referring initially to FIG. 1, an air-to-ground communications network100 will be discussed in which passengers within an aircraft 120 areable to communicate over an air-to-ground interface 200 using their ownpersonal electronic devices (PEDs) 130. PEDs 130 include personal mobilesmart phones or telephones (cellular and PCS), personal digitalassistants, wireless email devices, wireless equipped laptop computershaving Wi-Fi/WiMax capability, air cards, or WiFi equipped MP3 players,for example.

As will be discussed in greater detail below, the air-to-groundcommunications network 100 may be considered as a data-based network ascompared to a terrestrial voice-based network that also supports data. Adata-based network supports emails and text messaging without having tospecifically take into account the additional requirements (includinglatency) associated with traditional two-way, full duplex liveconversational voice. However, the air-to-ground communications network100 supports voice capability, as VoIP, and can send multimedia in theform of streaming video, multimedia web surfing, still pictures, music,etc. As a result, hard handoffs may be used between the ground-basedbase stations 140 as the aircraft 120 is in flight. Soft handoffs areoften used for voice-based networks, which negatively impacts the amountof frequency spectrum needed for a handoff.

The air-to-ground network 100 is not constrained to use air interfacesdeployed for terrestrial networks. An air interface that is not used forterrestrial networks may be used.

The air-to-ground interface 200 is used to communicate with theground-based base stations 140. Each base station 140 illustrativelyinterfaces with the public switched telephone network (PSTN) 141 and anInternet service provider (ISP) 142 through a switch 143 for providingemail and text messaging services. The PSTN 141 and the ISP 142 areillustrated for only one of the base stations 40. Alternatively, anInternet connection 42 could only be provided and not a PSTN connection41.

In the United States, for example, there are approximately 100base-stations 140 positioned to directly support the air-to-groundcommunications network 100 disclosed herein. This is particularlyadvantageous since the frequency band of the air-to-ground interface 200is different than the frequency bands associated with cellular mobiletelecommunication systems. In the illustrated example of theair-to-ground communications network 100, the allocated frequencyspectrum of the air-to-ground interface 200 is based on a paired spacingof 851 MHz and 896 MHz, with 0.5 MHz available at each frequency.

In contrast, one portion of the radio spectrum currently used forterrestrial wireless communications companies is in the 824-849 MHz and869-894 MHz bands. PCS is a wireless communications network thatoperates at a radio frequency of 1.9 GHz. Internationally, otherfrequencies and bands have been allocated for licensed wirelesscommunications, but they do not operate using the paired spacing of 851MHz and 896 MHz.

In the illustrated embodiment, equipment has been installed on theaircraft 120 so that the aircraft appears as a hotspot or intranet tothe PEDs 130. Nodes or access points 160 are spaced throughout the cabinarea of the aircraft 120 providing 802.11 services (i.e., Wi-Fi) or802.16 services (i.e., WiMax), for example. In addition, access to thenetwork 100 could be through an on-board picocell in which the PEDs 130communicate therewith using cellular or PCS functions. A picocell isanalogous to a Wi-Fi or WiMax access point 160.

The access points 160 are illustratively connected to an on-board server162 and an air-to-ground transceiver 152. The server 162 includes a datamemory cache 155 and a data traffic controller 158. An air-to-groundantenna 154 is coupled to the air-to-ground transceiver 152. An optionalcontrol panel 164 is illustratively coupled to the server 162. The datamemory cache 155 is for storing common data accessible by the PEDs 130during flight of the aircraft 120, as well as caching web pages for webbrowsing by a PED 130. The data memory cache 155 also stores informationduring hard handoffs between base stations 140 as part of astore-and-forward capability. In addition to the cache memory 155scheme, the server 162 includes a memory supporting a pass-throughscheme, as readily appreciated by those skilled in the art.

The aircraft-based data traffic controller 158 is for selectivelyallocating data communications channel capacity between the PEDs 130 andthe ground-based base stations 140. Selectively allocating datacommunications channel capacity may also be alternatively oradditionally performed on the ground using a ground-based data trafficcontroller 148 coupled to the PSTN 141 and the ISP 142. The respectivecontrollers 148, 158 control the IP traffic that will be allowed overthe air-to-ground network 200.

The respective controllers 148, 158 thus operate as filters, which maybe static or dynamic. Their operation depends on whether the network 100is lightly loaded or heavily loaded. For example, an email (from theaircraft 120) with a very large attachment would be limited orrestricted by the aircraft-based data traffic controller 158, whereas anInternet request resulting in a large number of web pages being sent toa PED 130 (from a ground-based base station 140) would be limited by theground-based data traffic controller 148.

By selectively allocating the data communications channel capacity, agreater or maximum number of passengers on the aircraft 120 cancommunicate over the air-to-ground interface 200 using their own PEDs130. For a given PED 130, the aircraft-based data traffic controller 158may thus limit data communications from exceeding a predeterminedportion of the data communications channel capacity.

Allocation of the data communications channel capacity may be based on anumber of different factors or metrics. For example, the respective datatraffic controllers 148, 158 may allocate the data communicationschannel capacity based on a priority of service. For example, creditcard information used for on-board purchases/shopping could have ahigher priority over email. The data communications may comprise flightoperational data and non-flight operational data. Certain types oftraffic may have priority over other types of traffic. Personnel havingPEDs 130 include passengers, as well as other individuals supportingoperation of the aircraft. Personnel with PEDs 130 supporting operationof the aircraft would be associated with flight operational data, andthis may be assigned a higher priority.

PEDs 130 that are cellular or PCS devices and are also Wi-Fi compatibleare known as dual-mode devices. One of the modes is cellularcommunications, with the other mode being Wi-Fi communications. Manylaptop, personal computers, and PDAs are Wi-Fi/WiMax compatible, whichare also classified herein as PEDs. After a connection is made to theon-board server 162 via Wi-Fi or WiMax, each PED 130 can transmit andreceive emails and text messages over the air-to-ground interface 200.

The dual-mode PEDs 130 carried by the passengers thus support multipleair interfaces, i.e., a terrestrial network and Wi-Fi or WiMax. Exampleterrestrial networks include any one of the following: 1) PCS, 2) theGSM family including EDGE, GPRS, HSDPA, HSUPA, and 3) the CDMA familyincluding IS-95, CDMA2000, 1xRTT, EVDO. The terrestrial network may alsooperate based on other network interfaces standards, as will be readilyappreciated by those skilled in the art. To reduce the cost of thedual-mode PEDs 130, a software radio may be used wherein the radio isconfigured to the air interface standard that is available. If more thanone air interface standard is available, different metrics may beevaluated to determine a preferred air interface.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, as an alternative to aircraft installedequipment, a respective translator device 50 may be used to interfacebetween each PED 30 and a ground-based base station 40 over theair-to-ground interface 20. The translator device 50 comprises anair-to-ground transceiver 52 with an air-to-ground antenna 54 coupledthereto.

In the illustrated embodiment, no additional equipment may need to beinstalled in the aircraft 12 since the translator devices 50 would bebrought on-board by the passengers. Each translator device 50 mayinterface with the PED 30 via a wired or wireless connection. Thewireless connection may be a Wi-Fi connection (802.11) or a WiMaxconnection (802.16), for example. The wired connection may be a USBinterface 55.

Alternatively, the translator device may be integrated directly into thePED 30′, as illustrated in FIG. 3. The PED 30′ would further include acontroller 56′ for selecting between the ground-based transceiver 58′ orthe air-to-ground transceiver 52′ associated with the translator. Aseparate antenna 59′ is coupled to the ground-based transceiver 58′.Instead of separate antennas 54′ and 59′, a shared antenna may be used.The controller 56′ may perform the selection automatically based on oneor more monitored metrics, or the selection may be based on input fromthe user.

Referring again to FIG. 1, another aspect of the illustrated embodimentis directed to a method for operating a communications system 100 for anaircraft 120 carrying at least some personnel having PEDs 130 forwireless data communications outside the aircraft with a ground-basedcommunications network. The communications system 100 includes an accesspoint 160 in the aircraft 120 for providing a WLAN for datacommunications with the PEDs 130, and an air-to-ground transceiver 152in the aircraft 120 cooperating with the access point 160 for datacommunications with the ground-based communications network. The methodmay comprise selectively allocating data communications channel capacitybetween the PEDs 130 and the ground-based communications network usingat least one data traffic controller. The at least one data trafficcontroller may be an aircraft-based data traffic controller 158 and/or aground-based data traffic controller 148.

Referring now to FIG. 4, another aspect will be discussed with respectto the data memory cache 155 cooperating with the access point 160 forstoring common data accessible by the PEDs 130 during flight of theaircraft 120. The common data may be in the form of web pages in whichpassengers can browse via their PED 130.

One of the functions of the data memory cache 155 is for cachingpredetermined web pages to be browsed. Instead of the aircraft 120receiving the web pages while in-flight, the web pages are receivedwhile the aircraft is on the ground. Nonetheless, the web pages may bealternatively or additionally updated or refreshed while in flight. Asan alternative to the data memory cache 155, streaming video or audiocould be real time or stored as provided from a satellite, including viaa preexisting satellite based IFE system on the aircraft 120.

The stored web pages may be directed to a particular topic or theme,such as services and products. The services may also be directed toadvertisements, for example. A purchase acceptance controller 190cooperates with the WLAN to accept a purchase from the PEDs 130responsive to the common data related to the services and products.

For example, the web content may be directed to an electronic retailsupplier so that any one of the passengers on-board the aircraft 120 canshop for a variety of different items using their PED 130. Once apassenger selects an item for purchase, the transaction can be completedin real time while being airborne via the purchase acceptance controller190 communicating over the air-to-ground link 200. This form of on-boardshopping may also be referred to as air-commerce. Alternatively, thetransaction could be initiated on-board the aircraft 120 via thepurchase acceptance controller 190 but the actual purchase could beforwarded via the ground data link 174 once the aircraft 120 is on theground.

The data memory cache 155 may be configured to push the common datarelated to the services and products to the PEDs 130. Also, the datamemory cache 155 may permit the PEDs 130 to pull the common data relatedto the services and products therefrom.

In addition to products and services, the common data is directed tointeractive maps, as will now be discussed in reference to FIGS. 5 and6. When an interactive map is displayed on a PED 130, the passenger isable to scroll or zoom in and out using a scroll or zoom bar 201, asillustrated by the screen shot 203 from their PED 130. The interactivemaps preferably correspond to the flight path 203 of the aircraft 120,and are updated or refreshed via the ground data link 174 when theaircraft 120 is parked on the ground at the airport 170.

While in flight, the current location of the aircraft 120 can bedisplayed. Flight information 205 may also be displayed. The currentlocation of the aircraft 120 may be provided by a position determiningdevice/flight path determining 191, such as a GPS system carried by theaircraft. Alternatively, the position of the aircraft 120 can bedetermined on the ground and passed to the aircraft over theair-to-ground link 200. The final destination of the aircraft 120 canalso be displayed prior to arrival at the destination. In addition,destination information such as the arriving gate number, connectinggate numbers, baggage claim information, hotels, rental car agencies,restaurants, etc. could also be displayed.

Data associated with the destination 209 may also be made available tothe passengers. As illustrated by the screen shot 207 from a PED 130,data categories titled Hotels 211, Rental Cars 213, Restaurants 215 andEntertainment 217 are available for viewing by the passenger.

If the passenger does not already have a hotel reservation, then adesired or preferred hotel associated with the destination of theaircraft 120 can be selected from the Hotels category 211. Thecommunications system 100 advantageously allows the passenger to make ahotel reservation while in flight. Likewise, a rental car reservationcan also be made while in flight if a car is needed. Other points ofinterest or services (such as restaurants and entertainment) associatedwith the destination of the aircraft 120 can also be made available tothe passengers, including reservations, coupons and other availablediscounts, for example.

Referring back to FIG. 4, when the aircraft 120 is parked on the groundat the airport 170, a wireless airport data link 172 is used to transmitthe web content pages to the data memory cache 155 via a ground datalink receiver 174 carried by the aircraft 120. A ground data linkantenna 176 is coupled to the ground data link receiver 174. The grounddata link interface 180 may be compatible with 802.11 or 802.16, forexample. The ground data link interface 180 may be Wi-Fi or WiMax forthe aircraft 120. Other interface standards may be used as will bereadily appreciated by those skilled in the art. These interfaces alsoinclude cellular and PCS compatibility, for example.

When the aircraft 120 lands at a different airport, the web pages can beupdated or refreshed over the ground data link interface 180. Inaddition, email and text messaging by the PEDs 130 may be continuedafter the aircraft is on the ground. Since the air-to-ground interface200 may not be available when the aircraft 120 is on the ground, theground data link interface 180 would then be used.

Once the web pages are stored in the data memory cache 155, a passengerusing their Wi-Fi or WiMax enabled PED 130 can access and browse the webpages for on-board shopping while the aircraft 120 is airborne. The datamemory cache 155 is sufficiently sized for storing a large amount ofinformation, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art.

The on-board shopping just described is for items that are not carriedon the aircraft 120. On-board shopping may also be provided to thepassengers for a limited number of products. For example, when watchinga movie or listening to music, passengers have the option of receivingstandard headphones or they can purchase a different set of headphones,such as high quality noise suppression headphones. These transactionscan also be completed via the passenger's PED 130 using the web-basedpages stored in the data memory cache 155.

Another aspect of the illustrated embodiment is directed to a method foroperating a communications system 100 for an aircraft 120 carrying atleast some personnel having personal electronic devices (PEDs) forwireless data communications outside the aircraft with a ground-basedcommunications network. The communications system 100 may include anaccess point 160 in the aircraft 120 for providing a wireless local areanetwork (WLAN) for data communications with the PEDs 130, and anair-to-ground transceiver 152 in the aircraft 120 cooperating with theaccess point 160 for data communications with the ground-basedcommunications network. The method may comprise storing common dataaccessible by the PEDs 130 during flight of the aircraft 120 using anaircraft data memory cache 155 in the aircraft and cooperating with theaccess point 160.

The PEDs 130 are not limited to receiving and transmitting informationover the air-to-ground interface 200. Referring now to FIG. 7, signalsmay be transmitted from satellites 220, 230 to one or more satelliteantennas 240 coupled to a satellite receiver 242 carried by the aircraft120. If there are multiple satellite antennas, then a network selectioncontroller 192 may be used to select the appropriate satellite antenna.This is in addition to transmitting and receiving signals over theair-to-ground interface 200 via the ground-based network and theair-to-ground transceiver 152 carried by the aircraft 120.

In the illustrated embodiment, an aircraft-based network selectioncontroller 192 is associated with the air-to-ground transceiver 152 andthe access points 160. The aircraft-based network selection controller192 determines whether data communications should be sent to the PEDs130 through the air-to-ground transceiver 152 or the satellite receiver242. This is accomplished by appending data to return via a satellite.

In addition or in lieu of the aircraft-based network selectioncontroller 192, a ground-based network selection controller 194 iscoupled between a ground-based satellite transmitter 145 and theground-based base stations 140. The ground-based network selectioncontroller 194 also determines whether to send data communications tothe PEDs 130 through the air-to-ground transceiver 152 or through thesatellite receiver 242.

Satellite 220 provides television and digital radio signals for anin-flight entertainment (IFE) system on the aircraft 120 over satellitelink 254. Even though only one satellite is represented, the televisionand digital radio signals may be provided by separate satellites, suchas a DirectTV™ satellite and an XM™ radio satellite. In addition, athird satellite may be used to provide email and text messaging,multimedia messaging, credit card transactions, web surfing, etc. Theillustrated satellite antenna 240 supports communications with all threesatellites. Alternatively, there may be a separate satellite antenna forthe DirectTV™ satellite, the XM™ radio satellite, and the email-textmessaging satellite.

An example IFE system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,748,597. Thispatent is assigned to the current assignee of the present invention, andis incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The television anddigital radio signals are sent through the on-board server 162 to seatelectronic boxes (SEBs) spaced throughout the aircraft for selectiveviewing on video display units (VDUs). Passenger control units (PCUs)are used to control the VDUs. The digital radio signals are alsodistributed to the SEBs for reception via passenger headphones.

Of particular interest is that additional information can be obtainedfrom the satellite 220 which can then be made available to the PEDs 130.For example, the satellite 220 may provide information including sportsscores, stock ticker, news headlines, destination weather anddestination traffic. The satellite signals received by the satellitereceiver 242 are provided to the on-board server 162 for repackagingthis particular information for presentation to the PEDs 130 via theaccess points 160, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled inthe art.

When available, satellites with or without leased transponders may alsoprovide additional information to be repackaged by the on-board server162. The other satellite 230 may be a fixed satellite service (FSS) forproviding Internet access to the PEDs 130, for example. For example,satellite television and satellite radio signals may be provided to thepassengers on their PEDs 130 via Wi-Fi.

In this configuration, a message for web pages requested by thepassenger (via their PED 130) is provided over the air-to-groundinterface 200. The message on the ground would then be routed to anappropriate ground-based network selection controller 194, which wouldthen transmit the request to the FSS satellite 230. The satellite linkbetween the appropriate ground-based transmitter 145 and the satellite230 is represented by reference 250. The FSS satellite 230 thentransmits the requested web pages to the aircraft 120 over satellitelink 252 upon receiving the request from the ground.

Since the satellites may be somewhat close together in a geospatial arc,transmitting the return link over the air-to-ground link 200 instead ofover the satellite links 252, 254 avoids causing interference from theaircraft 120 to neighboring satellites. Nonetheless, the request couldbe transmitted directly from the aircraft 120 to the satellite 230 usinga steerable or directional satellite antenna.

The request provided by the PED 130 is often referred to as the returnlink. The information from the satellites 220, 230 to the aircraft 120is often referred to as the forward link. The air-to-ground interface200 is a narrow band interface, which is acceptable for making a requestsince such a request is typically narrower band than the forward link.In contrast, satellite links 252 and 254 are wide band interfaces, whichare ideal form providing the requested web pages that are typically wideband data.

Each of the network selection controllers 192, 194 may be used todetermine whether to send data communications to the PEDs 130 throughthe air-to-ground transceiver 152 or the satellite receiver 242 based ona needed channel capacity of the data communications to be sent orcongestion on a link. Data communications with a higher needed channelcapacity is typically sent with a high bandwidth using the satellitereceiver 242, and data communications with a lower needed channelcapacity is typically sent with a low bandwidth using the air-to-groundtransceiver 152. Alternatively, the high and low broadband datacommunications links may be reversed. Alternatively, the networkcontrollers could determine that the aircraft 120 is out of the coveragearea for the air-to-ground network or the air-to-ground network is atcapacity in the location for that aircraft. In this case, the networkselection controllers could route the traffic over the satellitenetwork. Alternatively, the network selection controllers could routesome traffic types over one network and other traffic types over theother network, as readily appreciated by those skilled in the art.

One of the network selection controllers 192, 194 may determine to senddata communications to the PEDs 130 through the air-to-groundtransceiver 152 or through the satellite receiver 242 based on receivedsignal strength of the data communications, or a position of theaircraft. The current location of the aircraft 120 may be provided by aposition determining device/flight path determining 191, such as a GPSsystem carried by the aircraft. Alternatively, the position of theaircraft 120 can be determined on the ground and passed to the aircraftover the air-to-ground link 200. If the aircraft 120 is to fly over theocean, then data should be received through the satellite receiver 242.By monitoring signal strength of the received signals or the position ofthe aircraft, a determination can be made on when the ground-based basestations 140 are no longer available, and communications should bereceived via the satellite receiver 242.

The network selection controllers 192, 194 thus determine whether tosend static and dynamic web pages through the satellite-basedcommunications network 145, 230 to the PEDs 130. Dynamic web pagesinclude streaming video, for example. Each network selection controller192, 194 may determine to send requests for at least one of the staticand dynamic web pages from the PEDs 130 through the access points 160and the air-to-ground transceiver 152.

As noted above, predetermined web pages are stored in the data memorycache 155 when the aircraft 120 is parked on the ground (i.e.,electronic retailer shopping and on-board shopping, as well asadvertisements). Since the satellite links 252, 254 are wide band, therequested web information may also be downloaded for storage orrefreshed in the data memory cache 155 while the aircraft is in flight.

Another aspect of the illustrated embodiment is directed to a method foroperating a communications system 100 for an aircraft 120 carrying atleast some personnel having personal electronic devices (PEDs) 130 forwireless data communications outside the aircraft. The communicationssystem 100 includes a ground-based communications network, asatellite-based communications network, and at least one access point160 in the aircraft 120 for providing a WLAN for data communicationswith the PEDs 130. An air-to-ground transceiver 154 in the aircraft 120may cooperate with the at least one access point 160 for datacommunications with the ground-based communications network, and asatellite receiver 242 in the aircraft may cooperate with the at leastone access point for data communications with the satellite-basedcommunications network to the PEDs. The method includes determiningwhether to send data communications to the PEDs 130 through theair-to-ground transceiver 152 or the satellite receiver 242.

Referring now to FIG. 8, another aspect is directed to handoff of theaircraft 120 from one ground-based base station 140 to an adjacentground-based base station, or between azimuth or elevation sectors onone base station. Since the air-to-ground network 100 may be optimizedfor data instead of voice, delays or latencies can be tolerated withoutthe end user having the perception that the call is being dropped as isthe case with voice. Consequently, soft handoffs are needed forvoice-based networks.

In contrast, data can be stored on the ground or on the aircraft whilethe aircraft 120 is between cell coverage areas for a hard handoff. Oncethe aircraft 120 is within coverage of the next cell, the data can thenbe forwarded.

Hard handoffs can thus be used to make the connection from one basestation 140 to an adjacent base station in support of the air-to-groundcommunications network 100. Messages being communicated between a PED130 and the ground can be stored in a buffer or memory 157. The buffer157 may be part of the data memory cache 155, or alternatively, thebuffer may be a separate memory as illustrated. Each base station 140has a hard handoff controller 147 associated therewith. Moreover, withthe aircraft 120 typically flying at speeds over 500 mph, the delay isrelatively short.

To support a soft handoff, as would be necessary with voice, twice thespectrum resources would be needed. With a hard handoff, the spectrum ispreserved at the expense of having sufficient memory for storing data inthe buffer 157 (or on the ground) during a handoff while the aircraft120 is between base stations 140.

The base stations 140 define respective adjacent coverage areas andcomprise respective hard handoff controllers 147 for implementing a hardhandoff of a data communications channel with the air-to-groundtransceiver 152 as the aircraft 120 moves from one coverage area to anadjacent coverage area.

An aircraft hard handoff controller 149 may cooperate with the hardhandoff controllers 147 on the ground. The aircraft hard handoffcontroller 149 cooperates with ground-based hard handoff controllers 147by monitoring metrics. The metrics include a received signal strength ofthe data communications channel, or available capacity at the basestation 140, for example.

In another embodiment for implementing an aircraft hard handoff, theaircraft hard handoff controller 149 implements the hard handoff of adata communications channel with the air-to-ground transceiver 152 asthe aircraft 120 moves from one coverage area to an adjacent coveragearea. This implementation may be based on metrics collected in theaircraft. These metrics include a Doppler shift of the datacommunications channel, a signal-to-noise ratio of the datacommunications channel, or a received signal strength of the datacommunications channel. This implementation may also be based onposition of the aircraft 120, as readily appreciated by those skilled inthe art.

The buffer 157 may be separate from the aircraft hard handoff controller149 or may be integrated as part of the hard handoff controller. Thefirst and second hard handoff controllers 147 may implement the hardhandoff based on the following metrics: a Doppler shift of the datacommunications channel, a signal-to-noise ratio of the datacommunications channel, or a received signal strength of the datacommunications channel, as will be readily appreciated by those skilledin the art.

In other embodiments, a position/flight determining device 191 on theaircraft 120 cooperates with the ground-based hard handoff controllers147 for implementing the hard handoff based upon a position of theaircraft. The position/flight path determining device 191 may be a GPSor other navigational device.

The base stations 140 may be configured with selectable antenna beamsfor performing the hard handoff, as will now be discussed. In oneembodiment, one or more of the base stations 140 include selectableantenna beams 97, with each antenna beam having a same pattern and gainbut in a different sector as compared to the other antenna beams. Thedifferent sector may also be defined in azimuth and/or elevation. Eachantenna beam 97 may be optimized in terms of gain and beam width. Theminimally overlapping antenna beams 97 thus provide complete coverage inthe different sectors.

In another embodiment, one or more of the base stations 140 includeselectable antenna beams 98 and 99, with at least two antenna beamsbeing in a same sector but with a different pattern and gain. Antennabeam 99 is high gain with a narrow beam width for communicating with theaircraft 120 at an extended distance from the base station 140. When theaircraft 120 is closer in range to the base station 140, antenna beam 98is selected, which is low gain with a wide beam width.

As noted above, there are a number of different metrics to monitor todetermine when airborne users (i.e., PEDs 130) within an aircraft 120are to be handed off to a next base station 140. In terms of Doppler,the Doppler shift on the MAC addresses of the signals received by eachbase station 140 are examined. The Doppler metric is to be factored intothe handoff algorithm at each base station 140.

When using GPS coordinates, each base station 140 receives GPScoordinates of the aircraft 120, and based upon movement of theaircraft, the base stations coordinate handoff of the aircraftaccordingly from base station to base station.

Along the same lines, sectorized antennas at the base station 140 may beused for communicating with the aircraft 120. The antennas at each basestation 140 may provide a high gain/narrow beamwidth coverage sector anda low gain/broad beamwidth coverage sector. The high gain/narrowbeamwidth coverage sector may be used when link conditions with theaircraft 120 are poor. Sites could be sectorized in azimuth, elevationor both. These sectors could be static or dynamic.

If the link conditions with the aircraft 120 are good, then the lowgain/broad beamwidth coverage beam is used. In one embodiment, thecoverage sectors are selected based upon the link conditions with theaircraft 120. Alternatively, the coverage sectors are fixed at the basestation 140. For example, the high gain/narrow beamwidth coverage sectormay be used for aircraft 120 that are farther away from the base station140, whereas the low gain/broad beamwidth coverage sector may be usedfor aircraft flying near the base station.

Lastly, a ground selection algorithm may be used to select aground-based base station 140 based on the flight path and the basestations in proximity to the flight path. If the aircraft 120 is aboutto exit a cell, transmitted email and text messages for a PED 130 arestored until the aircraft is in the next coverage area. Thisadvantageously allows a longer continuous connection, which makes use ofthe limited spectrum resources more efficiently. The ground selectionalgorithm could use ground-based location information or GPS data on thelocation of the aircraft 120 and known ground site locations to optimizeconnection times. The resulting system may thus be considered astore-and-forward architecture.

Another aspect of the illustrated embodiment is directed to a method foroperating a communications system 100 for an aircraft 120 carrying atleast some personnel having personal electronic devices (PEDs) 130 forwireless data communications outside the aircraft with a ground-basedcommunications network. The communications system 100 includes aplurality of spaced apart base stations 140, and at least one accesspoint 160 in the aircraft 120 for providing a wireless local areanetwork (WLAN) for data communications with the PEDs 130. Anair-to-ground transceiver 152 in the aircraft 120 may cooperate with theat least one access point 160 for data communications with theground-based communications network. The method may include operatingfirst and second base stations 140 to define respective first and secondadjacent coverage areas, with the first and second base stationscomprising respective first and second hard handoff controllers 147. Therespective first and second hard handoff controllers 147 are operatedfor implementing a hard handoff of a data communications channel withthe air-to-ground transceiver 152 as the aircraft 120 moves from thefirst coverage area to the second adjacent coverage area. Alternatively,the handoff decision can be implemented by an aircraft hard handoffcontroller 149 in the aircraft 120. This implementation may be based onmetrics collected in the aircraft 120.

To summarize example on-board content deliveries to the aircraft 120from the various sources, reference is directed to FIG. 9. When inflight, the air-to-ground interface 200 provides connectivity forfeatures that include email, text messaging, credit card transactions,multimedia messaging, web surfing and RSS as indicated by reference 300.To use RSS, the PED 130 has an RSS news reader or aggregator that allowsthe collection and display of RSS feeds. RSS news readers allow apassenger to view the service selected in one place and, byautomatically retrieving updates, stay current with new content soonafter it is published. There are many readers available and most arefree.

The airport data link 172 may be used to provide the best of YouTube™ asindicated by reference 302. The XM™ satellite 220 may provide sportsscores, stock ticker, news headlines and destination traffic asindicated by reference 304. DirectTV™ may also be provided by satellite220 which can be used to provide additional information as indicated byreference 306. For future growth, two-way communications may be providedby a satellite as indicated by reference 308, such as with DirecWay orHughesnet, for example. The airport data link 172 may also be used toprovide cellular/PCS/WiMax services as indicated by reference 310.

The above content is provided to the on-board server 162 which mayinclude or interface with the data memory cache 155. The data isprovided to passenger PEDs 130 using Wi-Fi or WiMax distribution via theaccess points 160. Video and data is provided to an Ethernetdistribution 320 for distributing throughout the aircraft as part of thein-flight entertainment system.

In terms of transmission distance or proximity to the aircraft 120 forthe above-described on-board content deliveries, reference is directedto FIG. 10. Circle 350 represents information provided by the airportground data link 172 when the aircraft 120 is parked at the airport 170or moving about the airport with weight on wheels. When airborne, circle352 represents information provided via the air-to-ground interface 200,and circle 354 represents the information provided by the satellites220, 230. The information as discussed above is summarized in therespective circles 350, 352 and 354.

In view of the different air interface standards associated with theaircraft 120, the on-board server 162 may be configured to recognize theavailable air interface standards. As a result, the on-board server 162selects the appropriate air interface standard based on proximity to aparticular network. This decision may also be based on the bandwidththat is available, location of the aircraft 120 as determined by GPS,and whether the aircraft is taking off or landing. For example, when theaircraft 120 is on the ground, the ground data link interface 180 isselected. When airborne, the network selection controllers 192, 194select either the air-to-ground interface 200 or a satellite interface252, 254 depending on traffic demands, or both, for example.

Depending on the airline rules and regulations, the cellular mode of adual mode cellular/Wi-Fi device may not be operated on an aircraft belowa certain altitude, such as 10,000 feet. To support this requirement,the on-board server 162 and the Wi-Fi access points 160 may have enoughpico-cell capability to drive the cellular radio in dual mode devices tominimum power or even to turn the cellular radios off. The connection tothe wireless onboard network could be WiFi or WiMax. The pico-cellfunction would be to drive cellular/PCS output power to areduced/minimum or off condition. This turns the cellular/PCStransmitter “off” while on the aircraft, while allowing Wi-Fitransmission and reception.

Another metric to monitor on the aircraft 120 is related to priority ofservice. This is due to the fact that that aircraft 120 can receiveinformation over a wide band link from a satellite, for example, andtransmit requests for the information over a narrow band link. Ifsomeone tries to send a large attachment on their email over the narrowband link, or they are video/audio streaming, then access will be deniedor throttled or charged for a premium service for large data transfersby the data traffic controllers 158, 148. It could also be possible touse pico-cells to connect cellular/PCS mobile phones (PED) 130 to theonboard systems.

Therefore, traffic is monitored in terms of metrics to make quality ofservice and priority of service decisions. This decision may be madeon-board the aircraft 120 for any traffic leaving the aircraft 120. Thisdecision may also be made on the ground, which monitors if someone onthe ground is sending to large of an attachment, and if so, then accesswill also be denied or throttled or charged for a premium service forlarge data transfers. These criteria for decisions could by dynamic orstatic.

Priority of service also relates to quality of service. Various metricsand traffic conditions can be monitored to provide connectivity to agreater or maximum number of airline passengers on a flight. Operationsand cabin passenger entertainment (email, text messaging, web browsing,etc.) data can be multiplexed on a variable latency link. Operationaland passenger data may also be multiplexed with multiple priorities ofservice allowing some data to be handled at a higher priority than otherdata.

Yet another aspect of the aircraft air-to-ground communications network10 is with respect to advertisements. The advertisements are used togenerate revenue from the air to ground, hybrid air to ground/satellite,or satellite communications network. For example, when a passenger opensup their laptop computer 130 on the aircraft 120, a decision is madewhether or not to use the 802.11 Wi-Fi or 802.16 WiMax network. If thedecision is yes, then an advertisement is displayed while accessing thenetwork.

In addition, when portal pages are viewed, advertisements will also bedisplayed. Since the advertisements are used to generate revenues,passengers are allowed access to the air-to-ground communicationsnetwork 100 without having to pay with a credit card or touchlesspayment method, as was the case for the Connexion by Boeing^(SM) system.While looking at different web pages, the passengers will seeadvertisements interspersed or sharing the same screen.

Another function of the aircraft 120 is to use the air-to-groundcommunications network 100 for telemetry. Telemetry involves collectingdata at remote locations, and then transmitting the data to a centralstation. The problem arises when the data collection devices at theremote locations are separated beyond line-of-sight from the centralstation. Consequently, one or more towers are required to complete thetelemetry link. To avoid the costly expense of providing telemetrytowers, the aircraft 120 may be used to relay the collected informationfrom the remote locations to the central station when flying overhead.

Yet another function of the aircraft 120 is to use the air-to-groundcommunications network 100 for ground-based RFID tracking. Similar tousing the aircraft 120 for telemetry, the aircraft may also be used fortracking mobile assets on the ground, such as a fleet of trucks, forexample. The trucks transmit RFID signals that are received by theaircraft 120 as it flies overhead. The information is then relayed to acentral station. The RFID signals may be GPS coordinates, for example.

Another aspect of the air-to-ground communications network 100 is toprovide video on demand on the aircraft 120. This feature has beenpartially discussed above and involves providing television signals ondemand to passengers on the aircraft. The television signals may beterrestrial based or relayed via a satellite. In particular, the returnto make the request is not the same as the forward link providing thevideo. The return link is a low data rate link, and may be provided bythe aircraft passenger's PED 130 over the air-to-ground interface 200.The forward link is a high data rate link received by a terrestrial orsatellite based receiver on the aircraft. The video is then routedthrough the aircraft in-flight entertainment system to the passenger, orto the passenger's PED 130 via Wi-Fi. Alternatively, the video or audiocan be stored in the server 162 and displayed when requested by apassenger.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the invention will come tothe mind of one skilled in the art having the benefit of the teachingspresented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Inaddition, other features relating to the aircraft communications systemare disclosed in copending patent applications filed concurrentlyherewith and assigned to the assignee of the present invention and areentitled AIRCRAFT COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM WITH NETWORK SELECTIONCONTROLLER AND ASSOCIATED METHODS, attorney docket number 59043;AIRCRAFT COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM WITH HARD HANDOFF AND ASSOCIATED METHODS,attorney docket number 59044; AIRCRAFT COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM WITH DATAMEMORY CACHE AND ASSOCIATED METHODS, attorney docket number 59052, theentire disclosures of which are incorporated herein in their entirety byreference. Therefore, it is understood that the invention is not to belimited to the specific embodiments disclosed, and that modificationsand embodiments are intended to be included as readily appreciated bythose skilled in the art.

1. A communications system for an aircraft carrying at least somepersonnel having personal electronic devices (PEDs) for wireless datacommunications outside the aircraft, the communications systemcomprising: a ground-based communications network; at least one accesspoint in the aircraft for providing a wireless local area network (WLAN)for data communications with the PEDs; an air-to-ground transceiver inthe aircraft cooperating with said at least one access point for datacommunications with said ground-based communications network; and atleast one data traffic controller for selectively allocating datacommunications channel capacity between the PEDs and the ground-basedcommunications network.
 2. The communications system according to claim1 wherein said at least one data traffic controller comprises aground-based data traffic controller associated with said ground-basedcommunications network.
 3. The communications system according to claim1 wherein said at least one data traffic controller comprises anaircraft-based data traffic controller associated with said at least oneaccess point and said air-to-ground transceiver.
 4. The communicationssystem according to claim 1 wherein said at least one data trafficcontroller allocates the data communications channel capacity based on apriority of service.
 5. The communications system according to claim 4wherein the data communications comprise flight operational data andnon-flight operational data; and wherein said at least one data trafficcontroller allocates a higher priority of service to the flightoperation data.
 6. The communications system according to claim 1wherein said at least one data traffic controller allocates datacommunications channel capacity usage among the PEDs.
 7. Thecommunications system according to claim 6 wherein said at least onedata traffic controller limits data communications exceeding apredetermined portion of the data communications channel capacity for agiven PED.
 8. The communications system according to claim 1 wherein thedata communications comprises at least one of email data and textmessage data.
 9. The communications system according to claim 1 whereinthe WLAN comprises at least one of an 802.11 WLAN and an 802.16 WLAN.10. The communications system according to claim 1 wherein said at leastone access point comprises a picocell.
 11. An aircraft communicationssystem for an aircraft carrying at least some personnel having personalelectronic devices (PEDs) for wireless data communications outside theaircraft with a ground-based communications network, the aircraftcommunications system comprising: at least one access point in theaircraft for providing a wireless local area network (WLAN) for datacommunications with the PEDs; an air-to-ground transceiver in theaircraft cooperating with said at least one access point for datacommunications with the ground-based communications network; and anaircraft data traffic controller in the aircraft for selectivelyallocating data communications channel capacity between the PEDs and theground-based communications network.
 12. The aircraft communicationssystem according to claim 11 wherein said aircraft data trafficcontroller allocates the data communications channel capacity based on apriority of service.
 13. The aircraft communications system according toclaim 12 wherein the data communications comprise flight operationaldata and non-flight operational data; and wherein said aircraft datatraffic controller allocates a higher priority of service to the flightoperation data.
 14. The aircraft communications system according toclaim 11 wherein said aircraft data traffic controller allocates datacommunications channel capacity usage among the PEDs.
 15. The aircraftcommunications system according to claim 14 wherein said aircraft datatraffic controller limits data communications exceeding a predeterminedportion of the data communications channel capacity for a given PED. 16.The aircraft communications system according to claim 11 wherein thedata communications comprises at least one of email data and textmessage data.
 17. The aircraft communications system according to claim11 wherein the WLAN comprises at least one of an 802.11 WLAN and an802.16 WLAN.
 18. A method for operating a communications system for anaircraft carrying at least some personnel having personal electronicdevices (PEDs) for wireless data communications outside the aircraftwith a ground-based communications network, the communications systemcomprising at least one access point in the aircraft for providing awireless local area network (WLAN) for data communications with thePEDs, and an air-to-ground transceiver in the aircraft cooperating withthe at least one access point for data communications with theground-based communications network, the method comprising: selectivelyallocating data communications channel capacity between the PEDs and theground-based communications network using at least one data trafficcontroller.
 19. The method according to claim 18 wherein the at leastone data traffic controller comprises a ground-based data trafficcontroller associated with the ground-based communications network. 20.The method according to claim 18 wherein the at least one data trafficcontroller comprises an aircraft-based data traffic controllerassociated with the at least one access point and the air-to-groundtransceiver.
 21. The method according to claim 18 wherein allocatingcomprises allocating the data communications channel capacity based on apriority of service.
 22. The method according to claim 21 wherein thedata communications comprise flight operational data and non-flightoperational data; and wherein the allocating comprises allocating ahigher priority of service to the flight operation data.
 23. The methodaccording to claim 18 wherein the allocating comprises allocating datacommunications channel capacity usage among the PEDs.
 24. The methodaccording to claim 23 wherein the allocating comprises limiting datacommunications exceeding a predetermined portion of the datacommunications channel capacity for a given PED.
 25. The methodaccording to claim 18 wherein the data communications comprise at leastone of email data and text message data.
 26. The method according toclaim 18 wherein the WLAN comprises at least one of an 802.11 WLAN andan 802.16 WLAN.